The New New World, if all the prospective nations are born

Now, though, we appear on the brink of yet another nation-state baby boom. This time, the new countries will not be the product of a single political change or conflict, as was the post-Soviet proliferation, nor will they be confined to a specific region. If anything, they are linked by a single, undeniable fact: history chews up borders with the same purposeless determination that geology does, as seaside villas slide off eroding coastal cliffs. Here is a map of what could possibly be the world’s newest international borders.

 

The Arabian Gulf Union: Saudi Arabia’s military intrusion last year into the micro-sheikdom of Bahrain has effectively made the tiny island the 14th Saudi province.